The ground has yet to freeze, but colder weather will make it so soon. That means we should start now to protect certain plants and shrubs that need more covering during wintertime.
Protect some of the more tender broadleaf evergreen shrubs, like roses, lavender, rhododendrons and thyme.
Broadleaf evergreens will continue to transpire water throughout the winter, so it's important to protect them, especially from drying winds. The winds do more damage to these types of plants than actual cold temperatures do!
Create a barrier around them by putting stakes in the ground, then wrap chicken wire around the stakes. Next, wrap burlap around the wire. This barrier is going to block the wind and give them protection. You can also spray the rhododendron with the anti-desiccant spray.
For rugosa roses and floribundas landscape roses, you'll note a lot of die-back on the plants during wintertime. That is normal, but you can still protect the plants for winter. Try the same method with stakes, wire and the burlap wrapped around them.
After you create that barrier, go a step further and add a pile of wood chips, chopped leaves or hay and straw around the base of those plants — about a foot deep. That will protect the bottoms of the stems. Then, if there is die-back, the plant can still put out buds under the warm cover of wood chips, hay or straw. The plants may even flower earlier next summer, too!
Woody herbs like lavender and thyme can overwinter as perennials here. Cover the plants with wood chips, too, so they can make it through the winter. The plants will also mostly die back. Just prune them vigorously in the spring in order to spur on new succulent growth.
Any young trees you may have planted need protection from winter winds and weather. Wrap up fruit trees or regular trees in an extra warm layer with burlap or tree-wrap. This can also keep hungry rabbits from feasting on the bottoms of the trees.
A question about how far down to cut raspberry canes in the fall
Q: You wrote a couple of weeks ago about cutting raspberry canes down to the ground and they'd come back in the following autumn. My neighbor said he knows someone who did that and they got nothing the following year. Is there something more I should know? A friend who always has raspberries, especially in the fall, says she cuts the canes about halfway down. — Diane, in Rutland
A: First, determine what kind of raspberries you have. That will dictate how you should prune them.
If you have been taking raspberries in the fall, most likely, you are growing the "everbearing" type. This type of raspberry bush can take it if you cut it right to the ground this time of year. Everbearing raspberries will come back next spring, though they won't flower through the summer but produce a larger quantity of berries in the fall.
If you don't have that kind of berry bush, cutting the canes too harshly means you'll get no fruit next year.
A question about caring for indoor potted herbs
Q: Hi, Charlie. I've taken my potted rosemary and thyme in for the winter. How do I take care of them until spring? — Twinkie, via email
A: Find an indoor location with a south-facing window or place the potted herbs underneath some grow lamps. When you water the potted herbs, thoroughly let the water drain out and even let them dry out a bit. Then water again and make sure you have good air circulation. Continue this throughout the winter and the herbs will do well. Replant them in your garden in spring or keep growing them outdoors in containers.
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